Unless you are making the film by yourself, it is really hard to make a movie without a schedule. This can be daunting task because so many variables must be considered. Here is what I have done to help conquer this beast.

As I explain how to use the spreadsheet, please bear in mind that I can only use one character for each Column name because of the html coding. You should feel free to put whatever will help you in the top row.

Sit down at your computer and open up a spreadsheet program (If you don't have one, get one for free here). Leave the first cell empty and then put the scene numbers down the first column.
Ex. (where "0" is a blank spot)
0|
1|
2|
3|

Now take your notecards and script and put the names of each of your characters in a cell in the first row after the empty spot. Then put an "x" for every scene each character is in.
Ex. (where "J" is substituted for Joe and "C" is Chris)
0|J|C|
1|x|0|
2|0|x|
3|x|x|

Now put down the next column the if the scene is INT or EXT.
Ex. (where I am substituting "U" for "INT/EXT" and "I" for INT and "E" for "EXT")
0|J|C|U|
1|x|0|I|
2|0|x|E|
3|x|x|E|

Now list where the Location is for the scene (be it the House, the Backyard, the Pentagon).
Ex.
0|J|C|U|L|
1|x|0|I|H|
2|0|x|E|B|
3|x|x|E|P|

Now include what Time this scene takes place.
Ex. (Day or Night)
0|J|C|U|L|T|
1|x|0|I|H|N|
2|0|x|E|B|N|
3|x|x|E|P|D|

You can continue adding variables if you they are important.

When you have entered all the information into your spreadsheet, you should Save it. Then, tell the program to Sort the information by whatever columns you wish. So, for this example I would tell it to sort by Joe, then Chris, then by whether it's going to be inside or outside. And here is what I would get:
0|J|C|U|L|T|
3|x|x|E|P|D|
1|x|0|I|H|N|
2|0|x|E|B|N|

There really are no patterns in this example, but with more rows, patterns will emerge. You can take those patters (say, all the scenes with Joe and Chris at Night Outside) and schedule them at the same time. That way, you can get the most out of the limited Time you have budgeted.

I often make a couple different spreadsheets. One will often be the availability of my actors on certain days.
Ex. (where the date is "M" [Monday], "A" is AM, "N" is NOON, and "P" is PM)
0|J|C|
M|0|-|
A|0|0|
N|0|0|
P|0|x|
T|x|-|
I will use "-" to signify partial days and "x" to mean when they avialable all day. This way I can sort by actors and figure out what days work best for all the characters involved in each scene.

I then tend to print off a couple different sort versions of each spreadsheet. And then begins the process of figuring out what days to shoot what scenes. And guess what? You can use a spreadsheet to help you actually start penciling things in.



Ps. There is no Orange Juice CULT for you to join. But if it helps you remember this outline, you can use it.